Although web site blogs that provide commentary on a variety of topics are very popular, they typically emphasize the web site owner's or blogger's comments. Many bloggers do not allow readers to comment on posts for fear of the readers submitting inappropriate comments. As a result, reader interaction with blogs and other web sites is limited. If readers were permitted to post private rather than public comments, bloggers could allow readers to comment on posts without the fear that inappropriate comments will be read by other readers. However, blogs and web sites typically do not support posting of private comments.
Another problem with current web technology is that adapting blogs and other web pages for annotations and comments is very cumbersome and difficult. Even if a blogger would like to invite his or her readers to comment on the blogger's posts, adapting the blog or other web site content to allow such interactivity is difficult and requires programming skills. Details related to web page layout and content can also make it difficult to adapt pages for comments. Because of the difficulties in facilitating comments on individual web pages, many web site operators maintain a single blog for the entire site. Comments regarding unrelated content appear in the same area of the web site simply because a blog is supported in only one area of the site that users can visit to post. If a blogger would like to support private as well as public comments, additional programming is required to allow such postings on web pages. There is a need for a software system and method that allows web site operators to easily adapt web pages to facilitate posting of comments at web sites. There is also a need for a system and method that supports posting of private as well as public user comments at sites.